"...the hills of western Maine,.....where the subtle matters and the spectacular distracts."Bernd Heinrich in A Year in the Maine Woods

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Blessings of Liberty

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare and Secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution of the United States of America.Preamble, Constitution of the United States.

Charlie and I walked down to the American Legion Hall and voted this afternoon. It was a beautiful autumn day in Maine--no mittens, hats or neck warmers--a fine day in New England.

We saw our friends and neighbors coming and going from the old building that hosts rolicking Bingo parties on Friday and Saturday nights but today harbors the bedrock of our democracy.

I was able to vote for three people who I consider friends as well as a U.S. Senator whose brother shared an after-ski-race chicken stew with us a couple of years ago. As we walked home sipping a celebratory cup of Green Mountain coffee to keep us up for the returns, a Bald Eagle soared overhead looking for fish in the river and reminding us of our liberty.

When I was a child, I do not think that I could imagine that my grown up world would contain a presidential ballot with gender and racial diversity nor could I imagine that Bald Eagles would fly again over the rivers of the United States.

Beth--I can't remember an election that had such a history changing feel for me. Oh, there were other elections when I was very proud to vote for "my" candidate--but this one, this one moved me to tears.

Links to the finer things

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and I live in a small town in the mountains of western Maine. My stories are about all that is around me--family and nature and mountains and hiking and books and food and anything else that catches my fancy. Welcome.